PALM BEACH, Florida (Reuters) -The U.S. will “very soon” start taking action to stop suspected Venezuelan drug traffickers on land, U.S. President Donald Trump said on Thursday.
“You probably noticed that people aren’t wanting to be delivering by sea, and we’ll be starting to stop them by land also. The land is easier, but that’s going to start very soon,” Trump said, speaking virtually with U.S. military service members.
The Venezuelan communications ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The Trump administration has been weighing Venezuela-related options to combat what it has portrayed as President Nicolas Maduro’s role in supplying illegal drugs that have killed Americans. Maduro has denied having any links to the illegal drug trade.
U.S. forces in the region so far have focused on counter-narcotics operations, even though the assembled firepower far outweighs anything needed for them. U.S. troops have carried out at least 21 strikes on alleged drug boats in the Caribbean and Pacific since September, killing at least 83 people.
Reports of looming action have proliferated in recent weeks as the U.S. military has deployed forces to the Caribbean amid worsening relations with Venezuela.
Reuters, citing four U.S. officials, reported on Saturday that the U.S. was poised to launch a new phase of Venezuela-related operations.
(Reporting by Jeff Mason and Ismail Shakil; editing by Diane Craft and David Gregorio)
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